Colorado Wildfires Rage as Governor Suspends Controlled Burns

The Colorado wildfires that have killed at least two people and destroyed dozens of homes might not be fully contained until Monday, officials say.

About 500 firefighters fighting the blaze in the mountainous area 25 miles outside of Denver where the wildfires began Monday have managed to gain only 15 percent containment of an 8.5-miles-long fire, Jefferson County Sheriff Ted Mink said Wednesday.

The fire has swept over 4,500 acres and killed two people, identified Tuesday as Sam Lucas, 77, and Linda Lucas, 76. The husband and wife were found dead at their home, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office.

"It's down there," the boys' father says while pointing to flames. "There it is, right here, right here."

About 900 homes had been ordered to evacuate and as many as 6,500 homes were on standby orders for evacuation as of Wednesday, according to officials. The Gulick family managed to escape safely and so did their home, for now. Their home was still standing but not completely out of danger, they said.

While the origins of the fire remain officially under investigation, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper Wednesday took the preventative measure of suspending prescribed burns used to mitigate fire danger in the state. The Colorado State Forest Service said the blaze, which so far has taken 4,100 gallons of fire retardant and 49,000 gallons of water to try to contain, was likely started by a controlled burn it conducted last week.

"Through this suspension, we intend to make sure that we have the procedures and protocols in place so that prescribed fire conditions and management requirements are understood and strictly followed," Hickenlooper said in a statement.

The fire's rapid spread was fueled by high winds and dry conditions, officials said. The National Weather Service reports that the area had received only 0.06 inches of precipitation this March, compared with an average 0.82 inches.A search team of 32 people and six canines are also looking for a woman who lives in the fire zone and remains unaccounted for. Crews are searching the area and digging through the rubble of the woman's burned-out house to look for her remains, according to KMGH."We're not certain," Jefferson County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Jacki Kelley said. "We're looking beyond the home to determine if she ran from the fire. We're also digging in the home rubble in an effort to find her remains." The Associated Press contributed to this report.